


it goes round and round

by vitrine



Category: BLACKPINK (Band)
Genre: Alternate Universe - Amusement Park, Childhood, Childhood Memories, F/F, Fluff, Friendship, One Shot, Original Character(s)
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2017-05-27
Updated: 2017-05-27
Packaged: 2018-11-05 12:16:04
Rating: General Audiences
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 1
Words: 2,832
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/11013240
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/vitrine/pseuds/vitrine
Summary: She expected Lisa to reply with thank you or to laugh awkwardly, not for her to say, “I think you’re really pretty, too, Jennie.”(Years have passed and Jennie wasn’t 8 anymore, but she still remembered the child who held her hand when they became trapped on the ferris wheel.)





	it goes round and round

 

 

Jennie’s 8th birthday was spent with a blue frosted strawberry cake baked by her grandmother and playful laughter and gifts from her friends. For the first time in a few years, her dad didn’t have to go on a business trip, and managed to get a day off for her birthday. He gave her a doll designed to look like her, and it had a small backpack with a sketchbook and crayon inside, just like the real Jennie had.  All the photographs taken that day couldn’t depict the immense happiness Jennie felt.

 

What made it better was when a few days later, Jennie’s brother came back home from studying abroad.  Multiple apologies were given for missing her birthday, which Jennie was okay with. If Haejin could have left school earlier, Jennie was sure he would have done so. She couldn’t be upset with him regardless, not when Haejin announced they were going to an amusement park.

 

Playpark was a major amusement park an hour away by subway, and it seemed like everyone at Jennie’s school had gone there--except for her. Going to Playpark was a major deal, and Jennie promised to never give Haejin or her parents a hard time ever again if she got to go.

 

The moment Jennie, Haejin, and his friend, Mako, stepped onto the carnival grounds, Jennie already knew what ride she wanted to tackle first.

 

No, not the _Storm Roll_ roller coaster. Haejin and Mako were eager for that, nearly grabbing onto each in anticipation as they stared up at the 420 feet creation. Jennie wasn’t fond of fast moving rides, and the thought of going upside and twirling around at a fast velocity made her want to shrink away and cry. No, she was going for something better.

 

She was going to go on the tallest ferris wheel in the district: _Wheels around the World_.

 

 

==

 

She made a deal with her brother. Jennie could go on the ferris wheel while Haejin and Mako were on the roller coaster. After her ride, Jennie would just wait for them to come get her if they weren’t done before her. Clasping her hands together, Jennie told her brother thank you before running ahead to the ferris wheel. She was glad she didn’t have to wait for them to escort her to the ride; she was also happy to be allowed a few moments of independence.

 

The line was long but moving fairly quickly. The multi-colored carts shone brightly in the sun, looking like gumballs amongst the cotton candy clouds. Jennie wondered if at the top, she’d be closer to touching the sky. It felt like there was a ferris wheel inside her stomach, each cart carrying an ounce of excitement while others carried a tiny fear.

 

By the time she got to the front she realized her mistake.

 

“You can’t have a cart to yourself, sweetie. You have to have a second person with you,” the attendant said.

 

Jennie’s words got mixed up, something about _but my brother isn’t here_ and _but i don’t wanna ride with anyone_. As the attendant tried to decipher their meaning, another young girl piped up from behind Jennie.

 

“I’ll ride with her.”

 

The girl reminded Jennie of an American cartoon character she used to watch. Vivid, big eyes, and skin darker and hair longer than Jennie’s. She smiled at Jennie like they were friends, and Jennie tried to recall if she knew the girl from school.

 

She didn’t. But the attendant didn’t care, and told them to get inside the cart before helping to buckle them up and explained the rules.

 

As the cart moved forward for the next one to be filled, Jennie continued to stare at the girl. She was gazing out the window, eyes trained on the line of people still waiting their turn. She was pretty. Jennie liked the color of her dress, a soft green like her grandmother’s garden. “What’s your name?” she asked.

 

Finally earning the girl’s attention, Jennie felt an onrush of shyness that made her look down briefly. “Lisa,”  the child answered.

 

“Oh, that’s pretty. I’m Jennie. Where’re you from? You don’t look Korean.”

 

Lisa sucked in her lip, eyebrows scrunched up as Jennie realized perhaps her comment was rude. She quickly apologized, face hot with embarrassment. Lisa shook her head, and Jennie imagined her mother standing behind her, a hard frown directed toward Jennie.

 

“I’m from Thailand but my family lives here now. We moved here a few years ago,” she answered, and that was that. Jennie nodded so hard her braided ponytail flopped around.

 

Jennie glanced out the window, toward the direction of where the _Storm Roll_ was. The ride moved fast through the air, and Jennie thought she could hear the riders screaming. “My brother brought me here for my birthday. I turned 8 last week!” she exclaimed, reflecting back on her party and the special cake her family had devoured. Jennie hoped she could convince her grandmother to bake another one.

 

“Aw, happy birthday. I’ll turn 8 in two months,” Lisa said, smiling proudly. Jennie stared at her a little longer, voice quiet, before she found the words she wanted to say.

 

“You’re really pretty, Lisa,” she said, and it was true. Lisa was pretty like Jennie’s mother, the paintings Haejin created, and the dolls at the store Jennie wanted to have.

 

She expected Lisa to reply with _thank you_ or to laugh awkwardly, not for her to say, “I think you’re really pretty, too, Jennie.”

 

Jennie, who wasn’t often told she was pretty by her family, and whose classmates sometimes called her ugly, didn’t know what to say. She looked down at her lap again and said, “Thank you.”

 

The cart moved again and then stopped a few seconds later. Jennie could see two people below get off for two others to get on. She huffed, worrying that she would never get to the top before Haejin and Mako were done with their ride.

 

“Jennie?” Lisa had her legs crossed and was leaning forward, a soft smile presented toward Jennie. “Can you tell me about your birthday?”

 

Thrill gathered inside Jennie and came out in bright tones and cheerful stories. As the ferris wheel turned, Jennie told Lisa about her birthday party. She did told her about her family and how she wished her dad was home more often, but at the same time she didn’t, because her parents fought a lot. Her favorite people were her brother, her grandma, her best friend Jisoo, and her two dogs, Kuma and Kai. Her toys took up the majority of the space in her room, but she loved them too much to give them away, as her dad had given them to her. She had overheard her parents one night discuss moving overseas, and the thought of it scared her.

 

Jennie was so engrossed in answering Lisa’s questions and talking about herself that she hadn’t realized their cart had made it to the side of the circle. They weren’t quite at the top yet, but Jennie could almost see the entire park and the people resembled scattering ants.

 

Lisa listened quietly, smiling at certain points, and eyes widening in amazement occasionally. It felt good to have someone listen to Jennie, and seem interested, instead of telling her to shut up, that she was talking too much and boring everyone. Even Jisoo and Haejin sometimes got frustrated with Jennie talking.

 

Once Jennie felt she had nothing more to say, she asked Lisa, “What kinds of things do you like?” Lisa didn’t respond immediately, humming as she quirked her head to the side and thought on her answers.

 

Her favorite thing to do was create--either a dance, a drawing, or a new contraption made from broken appliances and random objects. She missed Thailand, and used to cry to go back home every night. Her family was going to move back once she graduated high school, but now she wasn’t sure anymore. (“Why did they change their mind?” Jennie asked. Lisa shrugged, a tint of sorrow lining her smile. “Something bad happened.”) She used to shared a bedroom with her older sister, and sometimes she’d messed around in her makeup when her sister was out. She didn’t like dogs but maybe she’d like Jennie’s if she met them. She didn’t have a lot of toys, but she had books she cherished, and a teddy bear her grandpa had given her when she was born. Her favorite place was the amusement park because she got to see different people all the time.

 

“--Oh, oh, we’re moving,” Jennie gasped. There were no pauses as the ferris continued to circle toward the top. The sun was at its midpoint, the sunrays painting the inside of the cart a milky orange and dark yellow. The colors enveloped Lisa, almost passing through her, making her one with them. Jennie couldn’t stop staring at her, even if as their cart reached the highest point, until their cart suddenly jerked. The seatbelt pressed painfully into Jennie’s stomach as her head hit the back of her seat due to the force.

 

She groaned, holding the back of her head. “What’s happening?” she sniffled. Lisa glanced out the window, seeing multiple workers suddenly run toward the wheel, and the line disappearing as a large crowd surrounded the ride.

 

“Why aren’t we moving?” Jennie began to look out the mirror too, when the cart suddenly jerked again. Not as hard as the first time, but still enough to almost make Jennie hit her head again.

 

Tears filled Jennie’s eyes until Lisa and the golden colors around them became a messy, blurry scene. “I--I think the ferris wheel is broken,” Lisa said. “I think we’re stuck.”

 

The joy and wonder that had built up in Jennie, the anticipation she had felt for getting to come to Playpark, came crumbling down. It crashed into what she thought was fun and wonderful, and the determination to be at the top now became a heightened fear. Looking out the window made her want to vomit. All the things that could possibly happen--the wheel jerking so much it completely broke and _crashed_ with everyone in it--filled her brain, and Jennie sobbed.

 

She buried her face in her hands, tears dripping down her wrists, and cries echoing in the cart. “I want my brother.”

 

“Jennie, it’s okay--”

 

“I wanna go home!” she cried, tear drops splashing onto her shorts. “I don’t wanna be here.”

 

Her cries drowned out the silence in the cart. Lisa said nothing, and Jennie didn’t think she wanted her to say anything. She wanted to be on the ground, she wanted Haejin to come get her.

 

She heard a _click_ and felt the cart sway before a presence sat next to her. Jennie didn’t look up until a hand touched her knee. “What’re you doing?” she whimpered, confused at Lisa’s empty seat. “You have to buckle back in so you won’t fall.”

 

Lisa took Jennie’s wet hand in hers and gripped it tightly, rubbing her fingers. “I’m not gonna fall,” she said, nowhere near as frightened as Jennie. “And neither will you. The park people are gonna work really hard to make sure we get off safely. It’ll be okay.”

 

Tears still flooded Jennie’s face but her sobs had reduced to small hiccups. “How do you know?”

 

When Lisa smiled it was identical to the kind of smiles Jennie’s mom gave whenever she tried to console Jennie after a bad dream. “I know of a lot things, and I know we’ll be okay. I’ll make sure you’re safe.” Lisa interlaced their fingers together, sighing contently when Jennie gripped back.

 

“O-okay,” Jennie said, heart beating a little slower, vision a little clearer. “Okay.”

 

“Okay,” Lisa repeated. “Do you wanna hear a story? I know a bunch of ‘em.”

 

 

==

 

It was an hour before the wheel finally moved and everyone was able to get off. An hour that passed by with minimal tears, because Jennie was too busy listening to Lisa’s stories of  tricksters and brave heroines. Lisa was huddled up with Jennie, and during that hour, she never let go of Jennie’s hand.

 

“Jennie!” A familiar voice called out to Jennie the moment their cart reached landing. The attendant opened the door, and barely unbuckled Jennie before the girl dashed out and into her brother’s arms.

 

She only cried a little that time.

 

Haejin stroked the back of her head as she rubbed her face into his shoulder. “Oh god, Jennie, I was so worried.  Are you okay? Were you scared?” he asked.

 

Jennie pulled back, wiggling until Haejin put her down. “I was but then Lisa helped me!”

 

“Who’s Lisa?”

 

“She’s---” Jennie looked behind her, ready to grab Lisa’s hand again.

 

No one was there. Jennie’s expression fell as she looked around the crowd and still couldn’t spot her. “Where did she go? She was with me on the ferris wheel.”

 

“I didn’t see anyone else on there with you,” Haejin said, pulling her back by his side. “It was just you.”

 

It couldn’t be because Lisa was there, she was with Jennie. Yet no matter how much Jennie called her name or searched each child’s face, Lisa wasn’t there. She was gone.

 

Jennie told herself not to cry but the tears came regardless. “Where did she go?” Haejin picked her up and cradled her, patting her back.

 

“It’ll be okay. Let’s go home.”

 

 

==

 

Jennie never went back to Playpark again, but it didn’t matter. The place was abandoned two years later amidst management scandals and broken safety protocols. Most of the attractions were torn down, including part of _Storm Roll_ and _Wheels around the World_. A lot of it was left to deteriorate. Now a group of elderly people took care of it, charging a cheap fee for people who wanted to explore the creepiness or use it as the backdrop to a photoshoot or music video.

 

Jennie was 18-years-old when she visited Playpark, alone, and regretting the shorts she wore when all the mosquitoes decided to attack her skin. She saw a few girls taking photos next to a worn down cotton candy machine. In the distance, she could see a group on top of the mirror maze building. A girl held a bundle of balloons as another person took photos and someone else held a portable lightstand for better lighting.

 

Jennie almost wished she invited her friends for an impromptu photoshoot. A selfie would have to do, but Jennie didn’t go there just to take photos.

 

She still thought about Lisa. For a while she wondered if she had imagined the girl the entire time, but she couldn’t force herself to believe it. She didn’t have her last name, and searching her up on social media never went far. Jennie started telling herself perhaps Lisa’s family was near Haejin when they finally got off the ferris wheel, and Jennie hadn’t seen them. Maybe they  left very quickly, and Lisa wasn’t able to say goodbye.

 

That theory never felt right either.

 

Maybe Lisa was a ghost. Maybe Jennie really did imagine her.

 

Jennie walked the pathway that led to the ferris wheel and looked up. The only carts still attached to it were the ones anchored at the bottom. What had once been so joyful and made her smile, was now destitute, gray, and empty. Its skeleton should have uneased Jennie, and yet she found herself smiling. It was hard to see the wheel as a broken memory when she could only think of Lisa.

 

Lisa calmed her down. Lisa helped her to be brave.

 

Jennie missed her. She wanted to know if she was okay. She wanted to tell her of all the changes in her life. Her parents were divorced but her relationship with her mom and dad was better. She had other (great, wonderful) friends beside Jisoo now. She was going to study overseas like her brother and she couldn’t wait. She still became afraid when unexpected things occurred, but she knew how to work through them. She didn’t cry so easily now.

 

Jennie brought out her phone and took a photo of the ferris wheel. She had to take several steps back before she got a decent shot, but it was worth it. Satisfied with the photo, she stuffed her phone into her pocket.

 

She turned around, chest a little lighter, and began to make her way back to the entrance.

 

And then she stopped.

 

Before her stood a girl, her hair not blowing despite the strong breeze rushing through. Her eyes were lively and held nothing but affection for Jennie.

 

“I was wondering when you’d come back,” Lisa said, and the tears that filled Jennie’s vision were not sad.

 

She was older, now the same age as Jennie, but she looked exactly the same as 10 years ago.

 

Maybe she was a ghost, real, imagined, or something entirely different.

 

Maybe she was just Jennie’s friend.

**Author's Note:**

> inspired partly by when i visited yongma land back when i studied in korea. it was really cool, the mosquitoes not so much. 
> 
> it's 3:43 am right now, so if there's any mistakes, i'll catch them another time. ✌
> 
> (also! i'm curious as to what you think about lisa, is she a spirit, a guardian angel, why can certain people see her and not others, what is going on ????)


End file.
